Sumner School Curriculum

Nau mai, Haere Mai Te Kura o Matuku Takotako
Welcome to Sumner School

The Sumner School Curriculum is a document that has been developed as a result of consultation with our community and students during our revisioning process, and through intensive professional development by staff over a two year period. It is designed to give guidance about how our local curriculum is to be delivered at our school.

What is the curriculum?
We define the curriculum as all the learning opportunities that take place within the school. These can take many forms and occur in different contexts.

The driver for all teaching and learning at our school is our Vision for Teaching and Learning. It encapsulates what is important to our community and provides a framework for our teachers to develop learning opportunities for our children.

Integral to these learning opportunities are the principles, values, key competencies and learning areas as outlined in the New Zealand Curriculum (NZC). Our local school-based curriculum gives specific guidelines about how these curriculum components will be actively encouraged and explored within our unique school context.

At Sumner School we consider the New Zealand Curriculum to be a core document for the planning and implementation of learning programmes. Our curriculum works in conjunction with other supporting documents, including our school Charter, Strategic Plan, annual plan and school wide policies and procedures.

Like Rapanui, Tuawera, Te Onepoto and Awaroa, our curriculum is built on strong foundations. All learning experiences start with our mission and vision at the centre, but also incorporate the NZC principles, key competencies, values and meaningful assessment practices. This is achieved in our unique community context.

By doing this we believe that our students will leave Sumner School being self, socially and culturally aware. They will express strong values, have well-developed numeracy and literacy skills and be active 21st Century learners.

Tūrangawaewae - The place where we stand

Rapanui
Ahakoa he iti, he pounamu.
Despite being small, it is of great value.

Tuawera
Ka ora pea i a koe, Ka ora i au.
We are all important to each other.

Te Onepoto
Haere, mahi kai māu, ka whati te tai, ka pao the tōrea.
Go, get food for yourself; the tide ebbs, and the oystercatcher strikes

Awaroa
Mā te huruhuru te manu ka rede.
Feathers enable the birds to fly.

Our Cultural Narrative was written by a group of Years 1-8 students in consultation with mana whenua following a school-wide inquiry about Tūrangawaewae (the place on which we stand). It recognises the importance Sumner (Ōhikaparuparu) had to Māori as a place to gather kaimoana (sea food).

Ōhikaparuparu is the name for for the coastal area that the Sumner township sits on. A loose translation of the name is ‘place where you may fall in mud’. The name is a warning to people that despite the variety of resources and abundance of flora and fauna in the area, if one was not constantly alert and aware of their surroundings, particularly the tides, they could get stuck in the mud flats.

Our four learning teams, Rapanui, Tuawera, Te Onepoto and Awaroa get their names from the four key landmarks that were used by Māori to identify different areas for gathering kaimoana. Rapanui (Years 0-2) was the entrance point to the fishing grounds and as such is the starting point for our ākonga (learners) as they enter our school.

As our ākonga navigate their way through the school they are guided through the landmarks of Tuawera (Years 3&4), Te Onepoto (Years 5&6) and conclude their journey at Awaroa (Years 7&8) the highest of the landmarks where they can look out on the wider world just as Māori have done for generations.

Our Mission, Vision and Values

During 2019 our Board of Trustees undertook a thorough consultation process with all stakeholders within our community including; staff, students, whānau, iwi and community. Our re-visioning process focused around understanding what our community believe to be the most important skills, attributes and values for our students to leave our school being able to know, be and do.

From thorough consultation our new Mission Statement, Vision for Teaching and Learning and Values was co-constructed.

Our Mission Statement

Mission Statement embraced by our staff and our Board of Trustees

Our Turangawaewae and Cultural Narrative talks of the importance of Rapanui, Tuawera, Te Onepoto and Awaroa. These enduring landmarks and places of deep significance for local iwi acted as signposts, skillfully guiding and pointing them in the direction so that they could locate places that were abundant with kaimoana and other valuable resources.

As our ākonga navigate their way through our kura they gather resources for growth and learning. We use our understanding of our learners and their unique Character Strengths to carefully guide them through the landmarks of Rapanui, Tuawera, Te Onepoto and Awaroa; the highest of the landmarks where they can look out on the wider world while feeling empowered as learners and deeply connected to the whenua (land) beneath them.

Nurturing character and empowering learners to navigate their world.

Our Vision for our ākonga

Our Vision Statement for our ākonga (learners)

At Sumner school everything we do is underpinned by the importance of forming strong relationships and utilising our unique location to deliver a high quality education to our school whānau.

Connecting with our people, our learning and our place.

Our Values

Whanaungatanga

The Māori value of Whanaungatanga is all about developing and maintaining respectful connections and networks with people. This value has whānau (family) at its centre. At Sumner School we understand this as developing a school whānau that actively works to develop and foster respectful relationships.

Mōhiotanga

The Māori value of Mōhiotanga is all about growing knowledge and understanding, and raising awareness and insight. This value focuses on our learning and the value we place on the learning process. Learning is not just about the end product, it is about the pathway that gets us there.

Kaitiakitanga

The Māori value of Kaitiakitanga is all about developing an understanding of our local environment and working actively to look after and protect it. At Sumner School we relate this to both our school environment and also the incredible local environment we are lucky to have on our doorstep.

Our Values

Whanaungatanga

At Sumner School we will respect, foster and maintain important relationships within our kura, community and iwi.

What does this value look like in our school?

By the time our Year 8 Awaroa ākonga leave us they will;

*Have built strong relationships with friends, family and the wider Sumner community
*Communicate respectfully and effectively in written and oral form
*Show tolerance, empathy and kindness in their interactions
*Be confident in sharing their point of view and thinking
*Embrace Te Reo Māori and understand the tikanga connected to Ngāi Tahu
* Understand the importance of reciprocity in relationships
*Know the importance of tuakana teina - Relationships fostered between our oldest and youngest children.

Our Values

Mōhiotanga

As ākonga we are immersed in new learning opportunities and will work to develop our knowledge, understanding and awareness of ourselves as lifelong learners.

What does this value look like in our school?

By the time our Year 8 Awaroa ākonga leave us they will;

*Have strong foundations in reading, writing, maths and science
*Be able to question ideas and think critically
*Show resilience and grit in their learning
*Be able to collaborate effectively with others, and also work independently
*Be able to set personal learning goals and self manage their learning
*Use digital tools effectively to enhance and share their learning
*Know where they are on their learning pathway and what they need to do next in order to continue their own progress
*Feel empowered and excited to continue their learning at High School.
*Have experienced a variety of learning opportunities that enrich our curriculum which include, STEM, The Arts, sports, environmental education and Education Outside The Classroom.

Our Values

Kaitiakitanga

At Sumner School we are dedicated to working as guardians of our place to actively protect its people, environment, knowledge, culture and language.

What does this value look like in our school?

By the time our Year 8 Awaroa ākonga leave us they will;

* Understand that they are kaitiaki (guardians) of Sumner School and their local environment
* Appreciate and understand the opportunities and needs facing their community and how these can benefit their learning
* Demonstrate agency in their learning by initiating self directed learning opportunities that serves to protect their place
* Successfully made links with our community and the wider world which grow authentic reciprocal connections
* Share their learning effectively to enable other ākonga to continue the mahi (work) that has been started and is important to our place.